In 1980, Nintendo launched Game & Watch—a handheld video game series developed by Yokoi.These systems do not contain interchangeable cartridges and thus the hardware was tied to the game.The first Game & Watch game released, titled Ball, was distributed worldwide.The modern "cross" D-pad design was developed in 1982, by Yokoi for a Donkey Kong version.He found that the biggest playing card company in the world was using only a small office.

Based in Kyoto, the business produced and marketed a playing card game called "Hanafuda".Yokoi was moved from maintenance to the new "Nintendo Games" department as a product developer.Nintendo continued to produce popular toys, including the Ultra Machine, Love Tester and the Kousenjuu series of light gun games.The success of the game and many licensing opportunities (such as ports on the Atari 2600, Intellivision and Coleco Vision) gave Nintendo a huge boost in profit and in addition, the game also introduced an early iteration of Mario, then known in Japan as Jumpman, the eventual company mascot.

In 1979, Gunpei Yokoi conceived the idea of a handheld video game, while observing a fellow bullet train commuter who passed the time by interacting idly with a portable LCD calculator, which gave birth to Game & Watch.

Nintendo's first venture into the video gaming industry was securing rights to distribute the Magnavox Odyssey video game console in Japan in 1974.

Does the dying ibex feel malice towards the cheetah? It's also interesting how sophisticated they're getting yet how stupid they still remain. Even funnier they do things like send pictures cut out of magazines claiming it's them, although you can see the photo's half toning and text from the page's opposite side showing through.… continue reading »